Update

Greetings from rainy Adelaide! Time for our update...

The kids have been going well (aside from colds). Lily is loving being mobile and has great fun trying to keep up with her brother. She follows him to the table at meal times (and will sit underneath his chair or stand behind him), watches him while he has a shower and will "annoy" him while he sits on the potty ;) She likes to pull herself up onto her feet, but a couple of times she has got herself stuck and not known how to get down. Hehe! 

Ossie is doing well. He is such a good big brother! He enjoys playing with Lil and likes to make her laugh. It's very cute! We're still toilet training him, but he's slowly getting there. He gave up his dummy when we got back from our trip to Bendigo, so that's a plus. Oh, and he'll be in kindy next year! 0_0

Damien has been busy busy busy at work. Lots of work involving the red cross. His dojo seems to be going well.. about 6 regular students each week. As well as that, Damien has been doing an exercise routine at home.

And I'm returning to work in about 2 months! I've started getting things organised... In the process of working out hours with my supervisor and then childcare. I've also bought Lily some bottles. It'll be interesting to see how she goes with being bottle fed and being in care. We're together a lot of the time, so it'll be a big change for her. And me ;) I'm determined to enjoy the freedom though :) Damien and I don't often get time together without the kids, so we'll make the most of it and organise some lunch dates :) 

Apart from that it's all just the usual kind of stuff... We've been enjoying Skyping with Nanny, Dayna & Bruce. So good to hear that everyone is having a good time.We'll start organising a party for Lily's first birthday.We'll try to time it so that Nanny will be there for it! :) . We're also thinking about where to put our veggie garden (that my mum has so kindly offered to get started for us ;) And we're getting new tyres for the care this weekend... ok, well that is scraping the bottom of the news story barrel ;)

Better end here. The oven timer has just gone off, so dinner's ready!

Hope all are well!

A mountain jaunt

Hi all,
The bandwagon has been a little quiet lately, what has everyone been up to?

We're on the way to Birmingham (well, technically Wednesbury, but there's only 16 km between them - kinda like Bendigo & Eaglehawk but with more houses in between). Mum lands tomorrow. :-)

I've been keeping busy with work. Last month I spent a lot of time travelling around Wales; in the space of one week I went from Cardiff to Bangor to Llanberis to the far side of Anglesey to Caernarfon to Llandudno to Wrexham to Builth Wells to Swansea & then finally home to Cardiff again. I'll have to see if I can embed a map. It was a little insane but was National Science & Engineering Week and I had four Chemistry at Work events to attend.  :-)

It wasn't all just work, Bruce joined me for the weekend in Caernarfon and we wandered around the cute little walled town and explored the castle. However, the highlight of the weekend would have to be walking up Mount Snowdon.

We started a bit late (we had to make the most of the delicious breakfast at the B&B), so there were no carparks at the ideal starting point. Not to be deterred we drove to Llanberis & managed to find a free space. Off we headed, up the path in the direction of the summit.

We may have taken a wrong turn right near the start and had to cut across fields a couple of times to get back to the right path...  But eventually we were heading up the mountain. The walk was challenging - a constant uphill for 4 hours! - and for most of the walk we were under or in grey clouds. It was pretty amazing to come out of the top of the clouds - dazzling sunlight, peaks above us, white below us.

One of the drawbacks with climbing Mount Snowdon in the off-season is the lack of amenities. Admittedly, most mountains don't have conventional toilets - in fact you're lucky if you find a rock to hide behind. However, Snowdon has a train line with stations along the way & a cafe at the top. So when I needed to pee, I figured that there would be a loo at the top. And there was. But it was shut! If the trains aren't running, the amenities aren't available! I think that this is a big mistake on behalf of Snowdonia council - there were about 100 people at the top of the mountain and probably at least as many on the way up or down, just think of all the puddles that were created that day alone!

After admiring the view and taking photos to prove we were there, we headed along the railway line for a while, found a quiet patch away from the crowd & had some lunch. After a short relax, we set off back down into the cloud. About three hours later we were drinking hot mulled wine at the start of the trail. It was much easier coming down but you still needed to watch where you put your feet. And watch out for the sheep! They'd bleat at us and then run away. Weird!

It was an enjoyable day but I think next time we'll take the train. ;-)

*hugz* to all

Happy Birthday Jared!

Happy Birthday! Hope you've enjoyed your day so far and glad you liked your pressie :)

What are you having for your birthday dinner?

Love, Uncle Damien, Auntie Cheryl and your little cousins Oscar & Lily

-xxxx-

Happy birthday Bruce

Happy 32nd birthday babe.

I know we both had to work yesterday but hopefully you still had a good day. It certainly looked like you enjoyed the pudding platter. :)

We've got nothing planned for the weekend so we can just have a relaxing couple of days.

Love you.
XxoO

Happy birthday Os

Dear Oscar, 

Happy birthday to you

Happy birthday to you

Happy birthday dear Oscar

Happy birthday to you! 

*big hugz and lots of love*
Aunty Dayna and Unkie Bruce
xxoo

Weekend!

The weekend is here, finally.

We finished work a little early tonight to take a quick spin to Knox - we completed our cutlery set, and Dee got some cupcake baking trays, whilst I splashed out on some running gear. The guy in the Mountain Designs shop had even heard of the ToughMudder course!

Two more months of training for me, then: I'm nowhere near ready yet but I can already see an improvement, and I'm totally psyched about doing it! We're going to head down to Phillip Island on the Friday (run is on Saturday morning) with my two team-mates, maybe stay 'til Sunday to make a weekend of it - a muddy, freezing, exhausting weekend!

Tomorrow we might have a friend or two over for a barbeque lunch I reckon. Saturday is my Cheaturday - a day to refueling on carbs and eating/drinking those things I've denied myself during the week - so at the very least I will have some chocolate and beer. Probably not at the same time.

Plans for the weekend?

Puppygate 2012

A couple of weeks ago, Lucy jumped her fence while we were out and went wandering off down the road. When we realised she was no longer in the backyard, I went walking up Baker Street following the sounds of barking, and found her a few houses up where they keep Rottweiler pups -- indeed, they'd locked her in their backyard and left a note on our door but she'd managed to escape again.

We didn't know how she got out, but "hardened" the perimeter in various ways: more wire, nails, tent-pegs so she couldn't tunnel under, etc. A few days later she got out again but this time we were home and vigilant and Lucy made it as far as the driveway before I was after her with a leash.

I reached the bottom of our driveway in time to see Lucy sniffing around the neighbours front yard, whilst said neighbour, rather irate, harrangued her from the porch. Mongrel this, mongrel that. I collected my dog and faced off with an apoplectic middle-aged woman. "She bit my duck! She bit my duck! That cost me $100 vet bill! I'll call the council!" I promised to come back once I'd put Lu back inside.

She was raging! Pointed out paw prints in the mud, but grudgingly admitted she'd not actually seen Lucy do anything - indeed, she hadn't seen Lucy before that day. When did it happen, I enquired? "Yesterday," she sputtered! Ah, but Lucy wasn't out yesterday. "The day before then," she groaned. I agreed to pay the vet-bill, all the while protesting Lucy's innocence - considering it "neighbour tax" and helpfully warning her about the many dogs in the street, not to mention the area. She was nice as pie once she had the money in her hot little hand.

Then yesterday we were putting the final touches on a dog proof fence -- 6-foot high, staked into the ground, made from electrified adamantium -- and Lucy, recognising the inevitability of yard-bound life and wanting one last fling, saw her opportunity and made a break for it. She'd been somewhat under house arrest for the interim, chained up when we were out and supervised when she went out for a pee, so we were quickly after her.

This time she didn't bother with the neighbour, walking past towards her German suitors, but nevertheless our Crazy Lady neighbour was out there brandishing a pitchfork and flaming brand, with the now-tired threat of a call to the council. Difference? This time she met Dee.

"Calm down, she wasn't even in your yard," I imagine Dee said, but it's hard to be reasonable with unreasonable people. "Good, call the council!" Dee returned with Lucy, then went back for a chat that was reportedly even more frustrating than the first. "She's not a mongrel," Dee explained to me later. "That's just factually incorrect." She did however manage to get a copy of the bill and a receipt for the money I'd paid.

The end result is we're finishing the fence today and hoping our neighbour -- a renter, "townies, eh?" -- was so distraught by the situation that she moves out and we never see her again.

If you haven't got a penny..

A ha'penny will do...

I made my mini Chrissy puds today. I used approx 400g of fruitcake and a good splash of a brandy/rum/alcohol from Spain. :-) I cut up the fruit jellies from Adelaide to make the 'holly' (which took ages).

No idea what they taste like, but they look pretty. :-)

I also want to try making these:
Rudolf tartlets
but I'll have to find substitutes for most of the ingredients. They look cute tho.

Hope everyone's Xmas planning is going well - we're off to the cabin on Friday so I'll look for you online tomorrow (your Thursday pm).

*hugz*

Happy Birthday Lisa!

Dear little-big sister,


Hope you have a wonderful day full of wonderful things!
Did you get breakfast in bed?


Happy Birthday!!!


*big hugz*
-d&b-

Happy 18th Carolynn

Dear Carolynn,

Hope you had a fabulous 18th birthday and that the year is full of everything good.

We look forward to seeing photos of your party.

Lovenhugz,

Aunty dayna & unkie bruce

Christmas is coming, the geese are getting fat

Please put a penny in the old man's hat...

Hi all,

We're going to be spending Christmas in a log cabin in Devon this year. I'm hoping to have internet so I can chat to everyone but we may need to play it by ear a little.

Anyway, I'm trying to get everything organised before we go and I want to make those cute little Christmas Puddings that Nana and Mum make.. I've found a few recipes on the internet but I want the fail-safe/tried-and-tested variety.. and I thought you guys might like it to.

So, Mum (or Lisa?), could you please put the Mini Christmas Pudding recipe in the comments to this post?

I'm sure I've had the recipe in the past (I must have, I made them 2 years ago and Bruce's Dad liked them - which is why I want to make them again)... but I can't find it now.

Thanks!!

-the Xmas Elves-

School's Finished...For now anyway

So I have finally finished school, until I find out about Uni or TAFE. I feel confident about my exams but hate the wait to find out about my results. I've been driving heaps, I don't realise how much time mum spends in the car because I'm doing all of her driving when I'm home which is good :) I'm upto 27 hours only another 93 hours to go. I'm helping out with the step up week at Bendigo Senior, I did so much walking aroud on friday helping students find classes and carrying the food and drinks for the BBQ lunch, I felt it on saturday.

French-Roberts update

Mum seems to be doing most of the posting so I thought I'd better update on things here. I can't believe Christmas is just around the corner, I'm not really prepared but there's so much happening before then. We've got break-ups happening every week - the Uniting Church invites playgroup to theirs, we have HIPPY (the program Trinity's been in these last 2 years), Connections, and we're having one just for playgroup this year as well. Usually once the church Christmas party has happened there's no playgroup but Julie-Anne and I have decided to go for 2 more weeks and finish the week before school breaks up. The feedback has been good, one mum said it's hard to find things to do in the holidays so she appreciates playgroup going that bit longer. The only thing is that the ladies that help out in the kitchen (cutting up fruit, setting the table, cleaning up afterwards) won't be there but the mums are all happy to help out. Tamara said she'll do it as long as we don't mind watching her boys and I've volunteered Carolynn as well LOL

Carolynn is waiting for her results now, then in January she'll find out if she gets to go to uni. In the meantime she gets to do some driving. I seem to spend quite a bit of time in the car LOL It means that Carolynn's hours are going up gradually. She won't have enough to go for her licence when she turns 18 but hopefully by the time she is 19 she'll be driving the laser around.

Now it's time to go to playgroup, we're making ants on logs (sultanas on celery and cream cheese) and fruit kebabs for snack today. Hopefully we'll have another quiet day today, it's easier when we've got under 10 children :)

Melbourne Cup Sweep

To give Bruce a proper taste of Australia and the Melbourne Cup, we've organised a Cup Sweep and you all have horses. Winner gets a UK Chomp.

The draw occurred this morning at Mum's and was undertaken and overseen by Mum, Bruce, Lisa, Carolynn, Daria and myself. 

1	Americain	Dayna
2	Jukebox Jury	Auntie Denise
3	Dunaden	Damien
4	Drunken Sailor	Mum
5	Glass Harmonium	Cheryl
6	Manighar	Daria
7	Unusual Suspect	Bruce
8	Fox Hunt	Pete
9	Lucas Cranach	Nana
10	Mourayan	Mum
11	Precedence	Jules
12	Red Cadeaux	Jared
13	Hawk Island	Oscar
14	Illo	Glenn
15	Lost in the Moment	Trinity
16	Modun	Bruce
17	At First Sight	Dayna
18	Moyenne Corniche	Carolynn
19	Saptapadi	Adam
20	Shamrocker	Lisa
21	The Verminator	Lily
22	Tullamore	Dee
23	Niwot	Lisa
24	Older Than Time	Carolynn

Good luck everybody!

Happy Halloween!

Happy fright-night everyone.

We went away this weekend, off down the coast to the Cumberland River campsite just past Lorne. Gave Andy (and Jules) a little taste of camping, although we stayed in a cabin -- which turned out to be a good thing, given the weather. Is it weird to get nostalgic when watching peoples' tents getting blown over, just as ours did those many years ago when we were last here? Watching from the comfort of a gas-fired room, of course.

Happy to say that we had a bunch of proper "occa" Aussies in the next cabin, so in one night Andy got more exposure to our authentic culture than is in a whole box-set of Kath & Kim. Unfortunately, the truly golden highlights of their conversation (which we listened to from the relative safety of our own little fire pit, giggling at the inanity) aren't exactly suitable for this bandwagon. (In one, a man was describing something he saw on a footy-trip/buck's night/Thailand trip, loudly and with great enthusiasm. Dee, who was sitting opposite me across the fire-pit, confirmed it: "Yep, he's got his pants down.")

LOL. No, literally.

Last night we celebrated Halloween with a couple of purportedly scary movies, both which were hilarious: Silent Hill (should've stayed a computer game title only) and the classic Poltergeist ("This houyahse is cleayahn!" "No it isn't." "Yah're rahght!").

Spook to ya later, fam!